


Trust is so Fragile

by CrazyFangirl007



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: All Characters slightly OOC, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Gender Changes, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Non-Magical, Evil Ron, F/M, Fem!Harry, Female Harry, Female Harry Potter, Female Protagonist, Good Lucius Malfoy, Past Child Abuse, Past Rape/Non-con, Rape Aftermath, Rape Recovery, Shower Sex, Teen Pregnancy, Unplanned Pregnancy, Vaginal Fingering, Vaginal Sex
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-08
Updated: 2018-07-04
Packaged: 2018-07-22 06:27:30
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 8
Words: 20,437
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7423654
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CrazyFangirl007/pseuds/CrazyFangirl007
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After returning to school Henrietta has an unexpected encounter in the showers that leads to unforeseen circumstance. Will she be able to handle thins on her own, or will she find help in some unexpected people? </p><p>(Sorry I suck at summaries, warnings for rape scene in text)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> AN: I do not own Harry Potter or its characters. Please remember Reviews give me life haha, in all seriousness though please review I do love to get your feedback. 
> 
> TRIGGER WARNING FOR RAPE AND ABUSE! While the abuse is not explicitly described it is implied. I know it is not clearly stated but Harry and the rest of her friends are 17 so depending on your country this may be considered under aged.

It was the start of a new school year, the only time of year when my Aunt and Uncle let me ride in the car. This is only because they knew it would get me to Kings Cross Station for another year of boarding school a lot sooner than forcing me to walk would have, and that meant I was out of their hair sooner.

Now to any other person I’m sure the idea of being sent away to boarding school would be the worst thing possible, but to me it is heaven. It is the only place where I am allowed to see my friends, and I am able to get away from my bloody awful uncle. It’s also a plus that it was where my parents met when they were in school. When we pulled up Dudley, my cousin pushed me out of the back seat straight onto the pavement nearly causing me to land face first and break my glasses. As I got up and inspected the damage my aunt and uncle pulled my things from the boot of the car and threw them next to me almost hitting me with a few of my bags.

As my uncle unloaded the last of my bags he and my aunt got back into the car as fast as they could and sped away promising Dudley they would take him to get some food since he was such a good boy during the trip. I laughed at this as I thought about the fact that he had done nothing but terrorize me the entire drive, from pulling my hair to calling me disgusting names. As they drove away I was left to get all my bags to the platform by myself, not for the first time. I grabbed a nearby luggage trolley and made it a game of Tetris as I piled all my things on it, pleased to have so many years of practice under my belt. With the cart loaded I set out for my platform as I started to get close I heard what sounded like my name being called.

“Harriet!” I heard again I turned to look at the voice that seemed to be calling me and saw my best friends running towards me with carts of their own, Ron’s family following close behind.

“Ron! Hermione!” I called back and waved my arms at them partially to make sure they saw me and partially because I was so pleased to see them. “How have you guys been?” I asked giving them each a hug.

“Well Ron spent his summer playing soccer with his brothers the entire time.” She rolled her eyes as if this was the most insane way for him to spend his summer. I couldn’t help but smile at this since to Hermione anything that wasn’t school related was the biggest waste of time during the summer.

“Oh yeah? Well Hermione spent hers doing homework.” He said disgust in his voice. I just burst out laughing hysterically as my friends argued over who had wasted their summer break. This caused them to stop arguing and look over at me.

“What’s so funny Harriet?” Hermione asked.

“Haha…I just missed this.” I wiped away the tears forming in my eyes from all the laughing. “Come on we don’t want to miss the train.”

I ran off laughing as they realized I was trying to race them just as we had done every year. I was pretty far ahead when I heard them yelling to watch out I looked over my shoulder at them to see if they were yelling at each other when I ran into something myself. I looked to see what it was and groaned. It just had to be him I ran into.

“Hello Mr. Malfoy.” He turned a cold gaze to me that sent a shiver down my spine.

“Ms. Potter.”

“Sorry about running into you I wasn’t watching where I was going.”

“Clearly or we would not be having this conversation.” He said his voice as deep and condescending as I remembered from second year. ‘Was that a hint of a smile… no, it couldn’t have been, Malfoys don’t smile. Ron and Hermione are catching up and that can’t happen I need to win this year.’

“Of course Mr. Malfoy, now if you’ll excuse me I need to get going I don’t want to miss the train.”

“Certainly Ms. Potter but please do slow down so that something like this does not happen again.” I nodded my understanding and started off for the train again quickly checking that I had not lost my lead. They had gained on me considerably but I still had a chance of winning so I put all my effort into a final sprint and beat them to the train.

“So was that awkward?” Hermione asked as she reached the train as well.

“It was more odd than awkward. He was actually quite cordial and not as cold as he was in our second year.” I answered confused by the change in Mr. Malfoys behavior from previous years.

“I will never trust that man he looks at you funny.” Ron said reaching the train as well. He pulled us up onto the train from the platform and then he grabbed our things as well.  
I rolled my eyes at Ron as we found an empty compartment and put in our luggage before we went back to say goodbye to the Weasleys. After our goodbyes were done we went back to the compartment, Ron and Hermione on one side and myself on the other, and waited for the train to leave. We spent the ride as we usually did talking with each other and joking around. We tried to catch up with each other as well.

“Harriet? How come you never really tell us what you do over the summer?” Hermione asked as she scooted closer to the edge of her seat.

“Because I never do anything interesting I mostly stay inside doing chores.” I refused to tell them exactly what I did because I wish I didn’t know what it was I did myself. Hermione must have seen the guilt I felt, due to keeping a secret from my friends, on my face because she looked over at Ron and asked him to give us a moment.

“What am I supposed to do while you guys talk?” He asked the tone of his voice making it very clear that he felt put out by the two of us wanting to talk alone.

“I don’t know go find your brothers or Nevil and hang out with them for a while. I’ll come to find you when we are done.” She said with a gentle but irritated tone to her voice. Ron stood up abruptly and left the compartment slamming the door shut as he left. “Okay tell me what’s wrong.” She said as she moved from her seat to sit next to me.

“I don’t want to talk about it Mione.” I said trying to turn away from her to hide the guilt and shame that I felt. Mione being who she was though wouldn’t give up.

“Harriet please I’m your friend and I’m worried about you.” She placed her hand on my leg in a gesture that was meant to be comforting but it just made me flash back to the summer which I would rather forget. I jolted out of my seat in a fight or flight response.

“Just drop it Mione! I said I don’t want to talk about, so I’m not going to talk about it!” This time it was me who left the compartment and slammed the door. I could feel the panic beginning to set in, so I made my way to the bathroom and locked myself in for the remainder of the trip.

When we finally arrived at Hogwarts and stepped off the train we saw all the new students being taken away by Hagrid to get the results of the sorting quiz that they took upon their acceptance to Hogwarts. The sorting quiz is what makes Hogwarts special. It is a quiz that every student must take so that they can be placed into a team or house as we call them. These houses are meant to help students make friends more quickly because they have to work together to earn points for their house throughout their time at Hogwarts. The rest of us piled into the buses and were taken to the Banquet Hall. Once we arrived we all went to our house tables.

“I hope the headmaster doesn’t have a long speech this year. I’m starving.” I said as we sat down.

“You say that every year.”

“Leave her alone ‘Mione. You know she’s not the only one who doesn’t want a long speech so that they can just eat.” I smiled at Ron in thanks for standing up for me.

I looked towards the head table to inspect who our teachers were this year. Specifically, the P.E. coach as we get a new one every year, at least we have since I’ve been coming, I see there is one less chair than usual. ‘Did they get rid of P.E.?’ And then I see the one thing I didn’t even know I needed to hope I would never see. The school nurse Madam Pomfrey is missing and in her place...I gasp.

“Guys Look!” I whisper urgently as I’m pointing to who I can only assume is our new nurse. They turned and looked letting out gasps of their own.

“The headmaster can’t be serious about hiring him! Maybe he’s just visiting for the night?”

“Oh come on Ron you heard Harriet on the train earlier, maybe he won’t be bad as a nurse.” Hermione tried to rationalize.

Ron shrugged his shoulders, put an arm around my waist and pulled me closer. I pushed him way feeling a little uncomfortable with how protective he was being after his outburst on the train. For the rest of Dumbledore’s speech about what the new school year would hold for us, the three of us just sat there not even paying attention when he brought out the new students telling them what house they would be in.

The only thing that broke us out of our silence was when the food arrived and we could finally eat. I dug in like it was the first real meal I had gotten all summer because honestly it was, all I got at my aunt and uncles were scrapes and that was only if they thought I had behaved that day. Once we had finished our food we were led by the head of each dorm to our rooms.

As we got closer to the bathroom on our floor Hermione and I said our goodbyes to Ron for the night and went with the rest of the girls to the female dorms. Our dorms are a little different than most. First, there are four different buildings one for each house, and each of the buildings has 7 floors. Each floor has one bathroom, a study area, and two massive bedrooms, one for the girls and one for the boys. The only difference between the floors was that the first floor also had a common room for all the students to hang out in. Each floor is dedicated to a single grade, and since this was our final year here we had the top floor as our living quarters this year.

Mione and I quickly settled into our new room as it was set up the same as every other room we had been given. Normally once we were settled we would go and meet Ron in the common room, but this year I just didn’t feel up to it so I told Mione to go without me since I was just going to go to bed. I waited for her to leave before I changed into my nightgown and climbed into bed hopeful for my first good night of sleep in months. Unfortunately, I had strange dreams that night that ruined that hope. It felt like someone was caressing my body all night long. I woke up in the morning covered in a cold sweat from the memories that the dream had brought to the surface, so I quickly made my way to the bathroom to get ready for the day.

I quickly got into the shower banishing such thoughts from my mind as I let it wander, oblivious to the world around me. I thought back on the years my friends and I had spent together in this building. I thought back to when I first met Hermione and how odd I thought she was; I smiled at how close we had become over the years. My mind then wandered to the first few months of knowing Ron and how scared I was because he looked at me the same way that my uncle Vernon did, but unlike Uncle Vernon, Ron had never done anything to me other than be protective of me. I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn’t hear when the door opened. All I knew was I was suddenly being slammed into the wall. One hand held my face against the wall while the other hand started to caress my body.

**_(Rape Scene Begins here if you do not want to read then skip to Chapter 2)_ **

I felt the hands trail from my outer left thigh to my hip and up my waist before it finally grabbed on to my breast. I wanted to scream and tried to fight them off when I heard him whisper in my ear words I had heard so many times before during the summers from a voice much gruffer and angrier.

“If you scream or fight me in any way I will make your life a living hell.” The words sent a shudder down my spine. I felt the hand on my breast move back down my body and stop on my hip the fingers massaging circles into my hip.

“For years you have been seducing me, prancing up and down the hall from the bathroom in your little towel. When you weren’t doing that you were walking around the common room in your tiny shorts and short tank tops.” The hand on my hip started to move lower. I thought what I had been through during my summers away from school would be the worst thing that I had ever experienced until I was forced to turn around and see the face of my attacker.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story had small grammatical corrections made to is on 7/4/18


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: I do not own Harry Potter or its characters. Please remember Reviews give me life haha, in all seriousness though please review I do love to get your feedback.  
> TRIGGER WARNING FOR RAPE AND ABUSE! While the abuse is not explicitly described it is implied. I know it is not clearly stated but Harry and the rest of her friends are 17 so depending on your country this may be considered under aged.

**_(Rape scene Continued)_ **

I gasped as I stared at the face of someone I had considered to be my friend. “Why are you doing this?” I whispered trying to hold back the sobs as he started to mouth at my neck. He moved the hand that had been holding my head down to my breasts to tweak my left nipple and the hand that had been on my hip moved closer to my mound.

He pulled away from my neck long enough to look me in the eyes.

“Because I love you." He said as his fingers started to rub circles on my clit. “And I thought it was time that I claim you as mine.” His mouth then went back to working on my neck.

I suddenly felt an overwhelming, but familiar, sense of shame as I began to understand what he had planned, and that there was nothing I could do to stop this from happening. As the shame began to overwhelm me I could no longer hold back the sobs as they began to rack my frame. Between the sobs and gasps I took for breath I tried to beg and plead for him to stop.

“shhh shhh shhhh. It’s okay Henry I’ll be gentle.” He said before claiming my mouth with his own and moved both of his hands to my hips. Soon I was being lifted slightly off the ground it not long after this before I felt his length begin to push in and out of my entrance in slow smooth strokes. I knew, from experience, the only thing I could do was wait until he was satisfied. Eventually I felt his thrust speed up and lose all sense of rhythm before he thrust as deep as he could and I felt something warm spread through my channel. He started to pull out and looked down before he froze.

“You’re not a virgin?!?” he whispered, but I could practically feel the anger rolling off of him. “You slut! You are mine! No one should ever touch what is mine!” He yelled as he brought his hand up and smacked me in the face. “That is just a taste of what will happen if I find out someone else has touched again.” He said through clenched teeth before finally releasing me, and looking at the mess he had made with a cruel smile on his face, as I slumped to the floor of the shower.  

**_(Rape scene ends!)_ **

As I sat on the floor of the shower I continued to sob for what felt like hours as the water washed my tears away. The water was cold by the time I had finally been able to pull myself up from the floor. I turned the water off and wrapped myself in the towel I had brought with me before I ran back to my room. Opening the door slowly I looked around to make sure that I was alone. Normally I had no issue with coming back from my shower and finding my room mates all sitting and talking, but after what just happened I needed to be alone to get my thoughts in order and see what damage and been done.

I quickly went to my wardrobe and pulled out a pair of sweat pant and one of my cousins ill-fitting sweat shirts that had been given to me when it no longer fit him. After I was dressed I quickly went to the vanity that I shared with Mione to see if any marks had been left. I couldn’t stop the gasp I took as I saw just how awful I was beginning to look from my ordeal. My cheek had started to swell from where I had been slapped, my eyes were red and puffy from the crying, my lips were red and swollen from how ruff he had kissed, and my neck was covered in marks that he had left. I quickly stamped down the panic I felt rising in my chest as I pulled out the make-up I had been able to buy on previous trips the students had been allowed to take into town over the years.

I pulled out a cooling compress first and applied it to my cheek to try to reduce to swelling. I then took my eye drops out in hopes that they might reduce the redness in my eyes. Once I felt that the two biggest problems were taken care of I began to work on my neck. I pulled out my concealer stick and began to apply it to each of the marks before blending it out. Once I was pleased with the blending I pulled out a liquid and powder concealer and began the process again. Finally pleased that my neck looked normal I took the compress off my cheek and did the same process to cover the bruise that was starting to from.

Just as I finished Hermione came laughing and smiling with the other girls. She made her way over to me and slung her arm around my shoulders. “Henry you missed breakfast!” She said a smile still on her face but worry, over why I would miss a meal, in her eyes.

“Yeah I overslept, so by the time I got out of the shower it was too late to go get some breakfast.” I said laughing trying to maintain my normal happy tone, not wanting to worry her any more. “Speaking of being late, if we don’t hurry we’re going to be late to classes.” I got up from the vanity and gathered my things for class before rushing out the door. I spent the rest of the day trying to avoid both of my friends not wanting to deal with either of them until my feelings had settled down some. I went so far as to pretend to go to sleep early when instead I sat in bed crying as quite as possible as memories flooded my thoughts and my dreams.

The rest of the week went much the same. I would pretend to oversleep and miss breakfast so that I could cover the marks on me cheek and neck, and then would rush to class to avoid having to answer any questions. Any time I had a free period I would hide in the library and work on my homework to try to keep my mind off things.

With the weekend though came a sense of dread for myself, but excitement for the others. This weekend would be the first of many that we would be allowed to take into town, but I had no desire to go. When Hermione came to me asking where I wanted to go this time I had told that I wouldn’t be going, and would be working on homework instead. Hermione became suspicious of my unusually behavior.

“What do you mean you’re going to do homework? It’s the first week and you never pass up an opportunity to go into town.” She gave me a concerned look. “Is everything okay Henry?”

“Yeah everything is fine Mione. I just didn’t get to do any studying over the break and I feel a little lost in class so I thought that I would try to get some homework done so that I don’t feel as lost.” I lied. I had just the previous day finished the last of my homework that was due. I always felt bad when I lied to Hermione, but I just couldn’t deal with going into town this weekend.

“Okay I guess I’ll see you when I get back tomorrow night then.” She gave me a hug and a smile before she left with the others. Usually the trips into town were only for one day, but they always made an exception with the first trip and allowed the students to have an extra day. To ensure that the students who wanted to stay the night in town were safe the school would book several different hotel rooms that were available to the students.

I sat on my bed for a few hours trying to figure out what I could due finally I got up and decided for the first time since the incident, as I was now referring to it as, I would go get a shower. I had been avoiding taking a shower all week trying to avoid being in that situation again. With everybody going into town that day though I hoped that I would be safe. I took my clothes with me this time not feeling safe with just a towel to walk back in even if I was alone on the floor. I tried to be as fast I could with my shower since I no longer felt like I could relax and enjoy being able to take a hot show.

After finishing my shower and getting dressed I looked at myself in the mirror above the sink and saw the bruises were healing slower than usual so I decided to go see the nurse in hopes that he might have something to help them heal faster. Knowing that not many people would be wondering the school hallways on a Saturday I didn’t bother with trying to hide the marks with make-up, but I did grab a scarf to cover the marks on my neck.

I was actually in the best mood I had been in since the incident until I got to the nurse’s office and tried the door only to find it locked. I just stood there staring as I felt an unjustified bubble of anger and betrayal over the nurse not being there. Finally sighing and shaking my head to disperse the feelings before they could take over my thoughts. As I turned to go back to the dorm I heard steps behind me as a voice called out to me.

“Ms. Potter is there something I can do for you?” the voice asked me.

I turned and saw Lucius Malfoy walking toward me in what appeared to be a white doctor’s coat.

“Oh I was just hoping to talk with the nurse, but I guess Madam Pomfrey hasn’t returned yet.” I said trying to bush off my visit to the nurse as nothing.

“Ah! I would assume that means you were not paying attention to the Headmaster’s speech at the welcome feast.” He said with what I can only describe as amusement in his voice.

“Well…ummm…No.” I said as I hung my head from the shame I felt at admitting this.

He let out a chuckle before responding. “Do not worry Ms. Potter, I myself was struggling to keep my attention on what the Headmaster was saying.” I looked up at him confused by what appeared to be a genuine smile on his face before the memory of him sitting at the head table came to the forefront of my thoughts.

“speaking of which what were you doing at the welcome feast, and why are you here now?”

He chuckled again and this time I realized what a warm sound it truly was. “Well Ms. Potter to answer both of your questions I am here as the school nurse this year.” I also noticed that as he said this the smile on his face softened it, from the severe mask that usually sat on the man’s features, considerably.

“I mean I kind of assumed you were going to be since I didn’t see Madam Pomfrey at the feast but I thought it would just be for a few days. Why would you agree to be the nurse for the whole year? You don’t need the money as Draco often make a point of reiterating how well off you are.” I saw his smile slip slightly at the mention of his son’s behavior.

“That is precisely why I agreed.” I couldn’t help the confusion that was clear on my face, but this only caused the man to chuckle again. I was starting to really like that sound. “Draco’s mother and I have had different thoughts on how to raise our son over the years, and I’m afraid I may have let her have more freedom with him than I should have. It is because these disagreements as well as other reasons that Narcissa have been separated and going through a divorce for years before our divorce was finalized this past summer.” The smile that had been on his face at the start of the conversation was no longer there.

“I’m sorry.” I said unaware of what he and Draco had been dealing with throughout those years.

“Oh don’t be.” He said the smile returning to soften his face again. “I was able to get full custody of Draco this past summer and because I was not as involved in his childhood as I wish I had been I thought I would see if there was a position here that I could take so that I could spend more time with my son.”

“Well then that explains why you’re here, but where is Madam Pomfrey?” I asked still unclear why the position had even been open.

“Ahhh yes…I told her my credentials as both a trained Nurse and as a trained psychiatrist to convince her that the students would still be in capable hands both physically and mentally, and then offered that if she would take this year off I would provide her with an all-expense paid trip to wherever she wished.” I couldn’t help but laugh at his response.

“I can see where Draco get his slytherin qualities from.” I had to wipe tears from my eyes I was laughing so hard. When I was finally able to calm down I noticed that I had taken my scarf off to wipe at my eyes and froze. I was suddenly afraid of what this man would think of the bruises on my neck. I tried to recover my composure as quickly as I could but when I looked at his face I could see that all mirth that had been there from our conversation was now gone. I tried to put my scarf back on to cover the marks I knew were still plainly visible, but Mr. Malfoy had grabbed both my wrists to stop the action.

“Ms. Potter I suggest that you come into my office if you do not wish to cause a scene where somebody might walk past.” He released my wrists and turned to open the door to the nurse’s office. Once the door was open he gestured for me to enter first. Although unlikely the man did have a point that someone might walk past, and I could tell that he would not just let me walk away without some of the questions, that he no doubt now had, being answered. I took a breath and stepped into the office.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story had small grammatical corrections made to is on 7/4/18


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: I do not own Harry Potter or its characters. Please remember Reviews give me life haha, in all seriousness though please review I do love to get your feedback. 
> 
> TRIGGER WARNING FOR RAPE AND ABUSE! While the abuse is not explicitly described it is briefly and generally described. I know it is not clearly stated but Harry and the rest of her friends are 17 so depending on your country this may be considered under aged.

 “Have a seat Ms. Potter.” He said motioning to one of the chairs in the office as he closed the door. Once the door was closed he grabbed one of the other chairs and set it down so that he sitting right in front of me with his arms crossed over his chest and a stern mask taking over his features again. “Now Ms. Potter would you care to explain the particular combination of bruises that you have.” He said taking on a tone that I had only used by one other person before, and that person was Snape when he was scolding me for ruining the experiment we were working on in class. It immediately made me feel like a small child once again, a feeling I did not appreciate. 

“To be honest no I would rather just find out if you have anything to help and leave.” I said a bit of sass in my voice as I crossed my own arms immediately feeling defensive. The response that I got was Mr. Malfoy releasing a large sigh as he slumped into the chair and ran a hand over his face in what I assumed was annoyance.

“Ms. Potter I assure you I am only concerned for your welfare, usually, when I see bruises like yours it is due to an abusive relationship. If this is the case, then I want to reassure that I am here to help you out of that situation.” He looked me in the eyes with complete seriousness as he said all this.

After seeing how serious Mr. Malfoy was I realized there was no true need to feel defensive, but I also was reluctant to sharing anything personal with this man.

“I understand that sir but really it’s nothing, and I would rather leave it at that. Now that this conversation is over is there something you can give me to help with these bruises?” I asked as I tried to stand up, but Mr. Malfoy was faster than I was and put his hand on my shoulders forcing me to stay in my chair.

“I’m afraid there is nothing I can do about your physical bruises.” He said looking me in the eyes still. I could tell from the tone he used and the way that he seemed to not just be staring at me but at my soul that he was trying to imply that he could help me in other ways. This realization shook me to my core as I had spent years perfecting a façade that I could hide behind when thoughts of my summers resurfaced and had recently been using that same façade when I couldn’t shake the memory of what had happened in the shower. With the knowledge that this man seemed to be able to see through my own mask, I couldn’t hold myself together anymore and just broke down into sobs in this man’s office.

He quickly saw my distress and tried to pull away to get the shock blanket that he kept in the office for emergencies, but before he could move away I grabbed onto his shirt not wanting to be alone as these feelings assaulted me and I continued to sob. Mr. Malfoy wrapped his arms around me in what felt like both a comforting and protective embrace.

“Shh, it’s okay. Nothing is going to hurt you here. I’ve got you, your safe.” He started to whisper these and other calming things into my hair as he ran a hand up and down my back. We sat like that for what felt like forever but I later realized it had only been an hour. Once I finally felt calm I tried to reluctantly release myself from his arms.

“I’m sorry about that sir. I don’t know what came over me, maybe I just need some more sleep. I’ll just go back to my room and try to get some.” I said as I pulled back from where I had buried my face in his chest, but quickly realized I couldn’t pull away further than that. “Umm…Mr. Malfoy you can let me go now.” Said confused why this man wasn’t letting me go.

“I’m afraid Ms. Potter that I cannot.” He said but quickly continued seeing fear start to make an appearance on my face. “Not for the reasons you are thinking I can assure you, but because I believe that you just had an emotional break down caused by external factors in your life. I believe it would be best if you and I go have a conversation with the Headmaster to see what can be done to prevent such a thing happening in the future.” He said still keeping that calming tone in his voice.

“Please sir I’m sure it was nothing I’m just not used to being back at school yet so I’m just tired.” I said hoping that he couldn’t hear the fear that was creeping into my voice at the thought that I might finally have to share my darkest secret of what happened over the summers I was sent home and what had happened earlier this week.

Mr. Malfoy let out an exasperated sigh. “Just answer me this one question. Has this ever happened to you before?” He asked with a look that made it impossible for me to lie.

I hung my head in shame as I answered my voice the smallest it had been since I first started at Hogwarts. “Yes.” It was barely above a whisper, but it was loud enough. He quickly picked me up in a princess carry before I could object and started out of the office and down the hall. The entire time I was struggling to be released and pleading that I was just sleep deprived and would be fine if he would just let me go to sleep. It wasn’t long before we were in front of the Headmaster’s office, but with me, in his arms, I realized he would not be able to knock and before I could even begin to suggest he put me down to free his hands he began to kick the door.

“Albus! Albus, I know you're there open the damn door!” He yelled trying to ensure the Headmaster could hear him.

Finally taking a break from his yelling and kicking allowed me to hear the footsteps on the other side of the door before it opened revealing Albus Dumbledore still in his loungewear.

“Ahh. Lucius, what brings you here on your day off? ...With Ms. Potter no less?” Dumbledore said with an ever-present twinkle in his eye.

“Ms. Potter has just revealed some distressing news to me after having an emotional breakdown in my office, and I thought it best you were involved in the discussion that was to be had to prevent such a thing from occurring again.” He said his voice taking on a tone of superiority.

“In that case please come in and take a seat. I will make some tea. I think chamomile would be best.” He said as he ushered us into his office while closing and locking the door behind us before he made his way over to the wood burning stove in the corner behind his desk to start on the tea. “Please make yourselves comfortable, and Lucius do put the child down I’m sure this is a conversation she would rather have in her own seat.”

Mr. Malfoy put me down and took a seat on the coach that was across from the desk. Unlike the principle and headmaster offices I had been sent to before, when I still attended school with my cousin, Dumbledore’s office was very cozy and more like a sitting room than an office. The only piece of furniture in the room that made it feel like an office was the large mahogany desk with the large leather swivel chair. The room was filled with different knick-knacks and pictures that had been collected over the years, and the only other seating in the room was a large sofa across from the desk.

 I had been in this room so many time of the years I had been here but never before had I felt as awkward taking a seat as I did now sitting next to Mr. Malfoy. I knew the conversation that we were about to have was contributing to my awkwardness as was my proximity to the older man. I was afraid that the conversation might cause another break down so I began to try and bury the painful, and haunting memories in the depths of my mind again where I wouldn’t have to deal with them.

I didn’t get as much time as I would have liked before the headmaster was handing mugs with tea to myself and Mr. Malfoy before sitting in his chair while resting his elbows on the desk and placing his fingers to his chin. “Now my dear child what has caused you such distress that it brought you to the breaking point?” He asked the twinkle in his eye dimmer than I had ever seen it before.

The bluntness of his question surprised me since he usually skirted around any topic that might cause someone distress. I was unsure how to answer, not because I didn’t trust the man sitting across the desk from, but because I had never said any of it out loud. The thought of admitting what had happened to me seemed daunting. Almost as if he could read my mind Mr. Malfoy shifted in his seat, so that he was facing both Dumbledore and myself, and began speaking to me. 

“I understand that this is a difficult conversation for you to have Ms. Potter, but the headmaster and I both promise that we will not share any of the information you tell us to anybody without first receiving your express permission.” He said resting his hand on my knee, while normally this would have freaked me out he somehow made it feel comforting. There was still a hint of the superiority in his that seemed to always be present in front of other adults, but mostly his tone had regained the comforting aspect that had been present earlier in his office. I took a deep breath when I realized that if I ever wanted to be able to behave like a normal person again I would need to discuss what had happened.

“I don’t know where to start. I’ve had to deal with this alone for so long because I didn’t want anyone’s pity. I still don’t want pity, but I know I need to move past this.” I said looking down into my mug as I held it tightly in both hands. I felt the hand on my knee move to my back and continue the soothing rubbing it had provided earlier in the office.

“It’s okay child take your time.” 

“Yes take your time, from what I saw earlier this will not be an easy conversation and I would rather you didn’t push yourself to that point again. Maybe start with precisely how long you have felt the need to handle this issue yourself.” I could tell my breakdown in the office had really freaked Mr. Malfoy out and that he wanted to ensure I would be able to get through this conversation without another. I took another deep breath before I responded.

“I have been dealing with this on my own since I was 10.” I continued to look into my mug until I heard a crash next to me. I looked over and saw that Mr. Malfoy had dropped his mug and now looked like a fish gasping for air.

“You have been dealing with something that would cause you such grief by yourself for the past 7 years?” I had never seen the man look more shocked or upset than he did at the revelation. 

“My dear poor child.” I heard the headmaster whisper so quietly I almost didn’t hear him. Beginning to feel the pity they both now held for me I quickly felt the need to defend my past.

“It wasn’t too bad, to begin with. Usually, it only happened if my Aunt Petunia and cousin Dudley had left the house for the day, and even then all he ever did was let his hand linger slightly longer than he would normally.” I felt my cheeks begin to heat at the memory of being left in the house alone with my Uncle Vernon. I felt Mr. Malfoy become as still as a statue while he continued to sit next to me. I was afraid to look at what his expression might hold for me but decided I needed to know what he thought of me, but what I saw was not what I expected.

I had thought he might be looking at me with disappointment or disgust; instead, I saw anger, but it was not directed at me as I had thought it would be. Mr. Malfoy was glaring at the Headmaster who seemed to have lost the last of the twinkle in his eyes and was now slumped back into his chair.

“How long until those lingering touches turned to more?” Malfoy said through gritted teeth the hand on my back had long since been removed now sat in his lap sitting balled into a fist, along with the hand that was previously occupied with his mug of tea. I had to think about the answer to this question as I couldn’t remember exactly which had been the first time his hands had done more than just linger.

“I…I’m not sure. I think maybe the summer after my second year.” I said looking down at my feet again trying to remember, while also keeping the memories away.

“SECOND YEAR!” He yelled pushing off the couch causing me to flinch.

“I’m sorry Ms. Potter I did not mean to startle you with my reaction, but perhaps we should not dredge up such old memories any further. I would like to say we are done but I must ask when was the last time you were touched in such a manner.” He asked still seeming to be calm, but I could see the anger that was barely restrained.

“The last time I was touched the same way that he touched me was the first day of the term earlier this week, but the last time he touched me was just before my 17th birthday this summer.” I said trying to detach myself from what I had just said not waiting to remember what had happened in the shower. 

When I looked up at the two men I noticed that they both looked angry but unsure of what to say. Finally, after what felt like ages Mr. Malfoy broke out of his stupor he moved from the couch to kneel in front of me. He proceeded to take my hands into his and give them both a slight squeeze while keeping his attention fully trained on me.

“Ms. Potter are you saying that somebody here has forced themselves on you?” I could still hear the restrained fury in his voice but also something else, something I couldn’t quite place. I had tears streaming down my face as the memories of the shower resurfaced and refused to leave, and didn’t think I could trust my voice at this point. Instead, I just nodded my head as it also became harder to breathe. Suddenly I was wrapped in the same protective and comforting embrace from earlier, my hands immediately grabbing on to the shirt in front of me.

“My dear child I’m so sorry that you have had to go through this, but I must ask who was the last person to do this to you.” Dumbledore said in a tone that conveyed his sorrow and compassion over the subject, more than the words he spoke. I knew that if I wanted to feel safe again I would need to tell them, but I was scared of what might happen when they confronted him. It was that fear the pushed me to shake my head vehemently. At this motion the arms around me tightened slightly and pulled me from the couch into Mr. Malfoys lap, my grip on his shirt tightened to the point that I thought I might rip the fabric.

“Ms. Potter I know you must be scared, but I promise you that we will do everything in our power to ensure that you are safe from any future harm that your attacker might try to inflict upon you.” I heard the soothing voice of Mr. Malfoy say into the hair on my head.

I took a shaky breath and looked towards Albus. “Ron…he ra-raped me.” I buried my face back into the comforting chest in front of me as the tears on my face were soon joined by the sobs that caused my frame to shudder. I felt his arms wrap tighter around me and heard Albus gasp at this revelation. Suddenly I felt exhausted from everything that amount of crying that I had done today and wanted nothing more than to escape from the world, so I let the exhaustion take me as I slipped into unconsciousness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story had small grammatical corrections made to is on 7/4/18


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: I do not own Harry Potter or its characters. Please remember Reviews give me life haha, in all seriousness though please review I do love to get your feedback. 
> 
> TRIGGER WARNING FOR RAPE AND ABUSE! While the rape and abuse are not explicitly described in this chapter they are alluded to. I know it is not clearly stated but Harry and the rest of her friends are 17 so depending on your country this may be considered under aged.

I was still half asleep when I started to hear what sounded like arguing.

“What do propose we do Albus? Let her go back to that dorm where he can have free access to her? Are you truly that unintelligent Albus?” I heard someone growl at the headmaster, it sounded as though the person were talking into a pillow.

“Of course not Lucius, but where else can she stay? We don’t exactly have any extra room on the grounds.” Shocked by what I was hearing I couldn’t bring myself to move not even open my eyes that were still closed. The room suddenly so quite I was afraid that even my breathing would start the arguing to resume.

“She can stay with me.” I heard Dumbledore gasp at the suggestion.

“Lucius are you sure that is a good idea?”

“No, but she needs safety and support both of which she will receive by staying with me.”

“How can you ensure her safety?” I heard skepticism in Dumbledore’s voice as these two men tried to work out the logistics of where it would be best for me to stay.

“She will have her own room in my rooms and she will be able to retreat to an area where most other students are not allowed. That is how she will be safe. He won’t be able to get near her outside of the classroom and if we alert her other professors of the situation he won’t be able to reach her in classes either.” It was clear from his tone that he would not budge on this matter, and to be honest it sounded pretty nice to be able to go somewhere Ron couldn’t reach me.

“And comfort? You know she has never really liked you or your son, and both of you will be present if she is to live with you.”

“Yes we would be, but again she would have her own room and I would not force her to interact with either of us. I might encourage it as I have a feeling we would both do everything in our power to protect her. Ultimately though this should be her choice to make and we would support her either way.” Realizing I was laying down on the couch I slowly pushed myself up, and swung my legs over the edge.

“Ah Henrietta I’m glad to see you have awakened.” I looked at Dumbledore and saw that while he sounded cheerful the smile on his face was a sad one.

“I was actually awake a few moments ago but thought it would be best to give my opinion on what you were talking about.”

“Oh and what is that my dear?”

“I would like to take Mr. Malfoy up on his offer. I know I haven’t always gotten along with either Malfoy, but I’m willing to try if it means that I won’t be where Ron can get to me easily.” I said ensuring that my eyes never wavered from the old man.

“Very well I shall file the paper work so that you may change housing.”

“Thank you Headmaster.” I said a smile on my face for the first time since I had my break down in the nurse’s office. “If it’s not too much trouble can I change rooms tomorrow before everybody gets back from town?” I looked at Mr. Malfoy this time hoping he would understand why I wanted to move so quickly. He looked at me with understanding and a smile that softened his features. I decided that I liked it very much when he smiled, he didn’t look nearly as imposing.

“Of course, and if you would like I will even come to your room today to help you pack and move what you will not need between today and tomorrow so that you can come over when you are ready tomorrow Ms. Potter.” The smile on my face grew even large as I gave him a sharp nod. 

“I would like that very much Mr. Malfoy, but if I’m going to be staying with you than I would prefer you called me Henry.” I said trying to get the man to drop the formality.

“I will do no such thing.” My smile faltered when I heard this. “You have a perfectly good name and if you wish me to call you something less formal than I shall use that name. Is that understood…Henrietta?” His own smile growing slightly. “And if I am to call you by your name than I would be happy to extend to you the same offer while we are in private.”

“Of course Lucius!” The smile I had on my face at this point felt like it would split my face in half.

“Very well I shall let you two go so that you might get dear Henrietta pack, and I will begin on the paper work.” With that Lucius and I began to make our way towards to door. “Oh and Lucius, I will be calling a staff meeting tomorrow evening so that we can explain the situation to the rest of the staff.” Lucius turned and gave the Headmaster a sharp nod.

“Of course sir.” With that he unlocked the door and we made our way to the Gryffindor dorms. We spent the walk discussing our different expectations of what would happen when I officially moved in to his rooms the next day, so I didn’t seem to take very long before we were in my rooms. 

“So what would you like to start with?” He asked once we were inside.

“Well I haven’t unpacked much since we’ve only been here a week. I guess I should start with pulling out what I need for tomorrow, and then we can pack everything else into my trunk.” I said as I looked around the room. I went to my wardrobe and pulled out my clothes and set them on my bed next to where Lucius had taken a seat. Going through them I set aside the sweats I wanted for tomorrow and started to put the rest into my trunk that sat at the end of my bed. A hand on my wrist stopped me as another hand took hold of my chin and pulled my gaze from my cloths to Lucius’ face.

“Is there a reason why it seems that aside from your uniform you appear to only own ill-fitting sweats?” Again there was anger in his eyes and something else that I could not quite place. I sighed as I turned away from him to continue my task.

“Because they were My cousins before he out grew them, and my Aunt decided that instead of buying me new clothes they would just give me Dudley’s cast offs and hand-me-downs. The bigger ones were given to me this summer. I used to have some that fit better but I got rid of them recently because I no longer felt comfortable in them.” I said as I pushed the clothes down into my trunk not even bothering to fold them.

“In that case we will need to take you shopping the next chance you have to go into town so that we can get you some clothes that make you comfortable and fit you.” He said a smile on his face as I stared at him in shock.

“Bu-but I don’t need new clothes these are fine.” 

“Yes but I happen to know that what you wear will influence your mood, so I want to ensure that you have cloths that will brighten your mood rather than pull your mood down.” I quickly turned away from him and made my way over to my vanity so that I could get away from this conversation.

“I-I guess that makes sense.” I still didn’t know what to think of getting new so I tried to brush the thought off, when a new one occurred to me and caused me to snort out a laugh.

“What has you laughing Henrietta?” He asked not moving from his spot on my bed.

“I was just thinking of how Draco is going to react when he gets back tomorrow only to find me living with his father.” I said no longer trying to hold back the laughter this thought summoned. I turned to look at Lucius to see what he thought and began to laugh even harder. The man had gone even paler than he already was.

“Yeess. I will need to make sure that I call him this evening so that he can be prepared for that when he returns tomorrow.” He was running his hand through his hair at this, and it made me wonder how soft his hair really was. I quickly brushed the thought away and returned to packing my things.

It didn’t too much longer for me to sort out what I would need for the night and morning before I was done packing. I closed the lid of my trunk after I put the last thing in it, and looked at what I had left out. I had left myself a pair of sweats, my toothbrush and tooth paste, and my stuffed snowy owl I had gotten when I started at Hogwarts. Looking at it I realized I really didn’t need much for my last night in the dorms. The thought that I would be here by myself made my chest feel constricted as I suddenly was having difficulty breathing. It felt as though the walls and ceiling were beginning to close in on me before I felt strong arms around me. 

“Breath. Just take some deep breath I know it’s hard but try. Your safe here it’s going to be okay.” I tried to do as Lucius instructed and slowly was able to calm down. “Maybe we should just move you in tonight so that you won’t be alone if that happens again.” He still had me in his arms around me and was running one of his hands over my hair while the other rested on my back. It felt very soothing when he held me in his arms I noticed.

“I-I would like that. I don’t think I can be alone in this room anymore.” My voice sounding small and broken even to my own ears. He gently placed a finger under my chin and lifted my head from his chest to look him in the face. “Then grab your things from your bed I will grab your trunk, and we can go and get you settled into your new room.” 

We made sure that I didn’t forget anything before we each grabbed our loads and made our way to his rooms. It was perhaps the furthest place from the dorms, but that was because all the staff quarters were on the other side of the building that held our classes. Although it was furthest from the dorm it was closer to the build. I was surprised to see that each staff member had their own houses so it looked like a little town rather than the apartment building I had been expecting.

When we reached his house he set my trunk down on the porch and opened the door. After the door was open he picked up the trunk again and motioned for me to follow him inside. I closed the door behind myself and quickly followed him up the stairs until we reached the landing.  

“Okay why don’t you wait here for a bit I just need to move a few things, and then we can get you settled into your new room.” He said setting my trunk down again and giving me a big smile before he entered the door at the far left end of the landing. I surprised that he had such a spacious house. The landing had four different doors that exited on to it. The one that was furthest from the stairs was the one Lucius had just entered to my left after having just come up to the landing. Then there were two more on the wall directly in front of me and a final one that was directly to my right. I sat quietly waiting for Lucius to return and tell me which of these doors would lead to my room.

I sat the for almost an hour, according the clock I could see down stairs, before Lucius emerged with what appeared to be a trash bag full of things. I looked at him confused, but he said nothing and just threw the bag into the door to the right on the wall in front of me.

“Okay now we can get you all settled into your new room.” He said as he closed the door. He picked up my trunk and brought it into the room that was at the end of the landing. I was amazed when I walked in the room was much more spacious than any that I had as my own before without having to share. There was a large queen sized four poster bed, on the far wall, centered between two floor to ceiling windows. There was a small desk in the corner to the right of the door, so I wouldn’t even need to leave to work on homework. I noticed to more door on either side of the room, and looked at Lucius unsure if it was okay for me to explore. He gave a soft chuckle at the look on my face.

“The door to your right leads to your closet where you are welcome to put all the cloths you currently have and any that we get you in the future. The door to your left leads to the ensuite bathroom.” He looked at me an chuckled again at the look of surprise on my face. I was just about to thank him when a thought occurred to me.

“This was your room and you just cleared everything out.” It wasn’t a question but the slight nod and slight apprehension on his face told me all I needed to know. I quickly wrapped my arms around him and buried my face in his chest again. “Thank you Lucius you have no clue how much this means to me.” He wrapped his arms around me and gave me a tight squeeze in response.

“You are welcome. Now why don’t you unpack and I will have dinner ready for you by the time you come down, as I do believe that we both missed lunch earlier.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story had small grammatical corrections made to is on 7/4/18


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own Harry Potter or its characters. Please remember Reviews give me life haha, in all seriousness though please review I do love to get your feedback. 
> 
> TRIGGER WARNING FOR RAPE AND ABUSE! While the rape and abuse are not explicitly described in this chapter they are alluded to. I know it is not clearly stated but Harry and the rest of her friends are 17 so depending on your country this may be considered under aged.

I took a few minutes to truly explore the room before I began to unpack. I first went to explore the closet which was almost as big as the bedroom itself. ‘There is no way I will ever be able to fill this closet.’ Right wall was divided into two types of organization. When I turned to face it I saw that the left half had two rods clearly meant for clothes that were to be hung on hangers. The right half looked more like a wardrobe. The top half had two doors that hid three different shelves, while the bottom half was made of three drawers. The left wall also had a section for hanging clothes but then it also had another section of rods that seemed to stagger down, it took me awhile to realize it was meant for shoes. Final the wall at the back is what surprised me the most as it held a washer and dryer as well as what appeared to be a folding station, and four different hampers labeled to help me divide my laundry.

Once I felt I had explored the closet to the fullest I made my way over to the bathroom. Again the room was very large and appeared to be done in a more traditional Japanese style, which greatly supposed me. The room had tiled floors with a drain in the center of the floor. The walls were also tiled almost all the way to the ceiling. There was a shower head mounted on one of the walls and the other wall had a door that I found led to a small room that held the toilet and sink. At the end of the tiled room was a huge bathtub that almost looked like a small pool. I was surprised that Lucius would give me such an extravagant room given the fact that we hardly knew each other.

Once I was satisfied with my exploration I began to unpack my trunk. I didn’t take me long to unpack my things and put them away, so I made my way downstairs and began to search the rest of the house for Lucius. I eventually found him in the kitchen-dining area sitting at the table with a plate of sandwiches in the center of the table and his laptop in front of him, and made my way over to the table to take a seat across from him.

“I thought when you said you would make dinner that I would come down to something hot.” I said jokingly as I stood behind the chair I intended to sit in. I heard Lucius give a chuckle.

“Well I was planning to make you something hot but when I got down here realized I haven’t had a chance to go to the store to get any groceries. Although honestly I probably could have gone and gotten some with how much time you spent up there” He said with a slight smile on his face he shook his head as he gave a shrug.

I blushed slightly and looked down at the ground embarrassed that I had not realized I had taken so long. “I’m sorry I didn’t mean to take so long.” I heard the sound of a chair scraping the floor and steps being taken before I felt myself being wrapped in strong arms.

“Hey now,” I felt fingers under my chin lifting my face to look up. “I was only teasing. I had a feeling that, although you didn’t have much stuff, it would probably take you awhile to unpack and come down and I wanted to make sure that I would be here when you did come down.” The hand that had been holding my head up soon moved to hold the side of my face. “Now why don’t we wipe those tears away and sit down to enjoy some food together.” He said as he used his thumbs to wipe away the tears I was unaware I had even shed.

“That sounds good.” I said as I took my seat and Lucius returned to his. “What about Draco?” I asked as I took two of the sandwiches from the plate in the center of the table to place them on the plate in front of me. “Have you told him yet?” I asked before taking a bite out of one of the sandwiches. I looked up at Lucius and saw the apprehension from earlier on his face yet again.

“Not yet I have been trying to get ahold of him so That I can video chat with him Because I know that if I try to just call him he won’t pick up.” He said running a hand over his face.

“Oh? Have you tried to contact him through Crabbe or Goyle those two are always following him around.” I said nonchalantly as I took another bite of my sandwich. He stared at me slightly shocked.

“Why didn’t I think of that! Okay I will try to contact him that way you eat as many sandwiches as you like I have already had my fill.” The smile returning to his face as he began to call and text all three boys.

It was another 20 minutes before he was finally able to get Draco on skype. I had just begun cleaning up from lunch what I heard Draco greet his father.

“What is it Father? I was just about to go out when Crabbe and Goyle dragged me back to the room and forced me to call you. Also why are you bothering my friends?” I could hear the irritation in his voice as it sent a shiver down my spine. That was always the tone he had before he and his buddies would gang up to bully me verbally.

“I was ‘bothering’ your friends as you put it because you would not respond to any of my attempts to contact you.” Lucius was also beginning to sound irritated. I continued to try to clean the kitchen as quietly as I could.

“Yeah because this is one of my free weekends where I don’t have to deal with anything annoying not even Potter since she apparently decided not to come.” I could hear the pleasure of my absence in his voice and could even picture the vicious smile that went with it, and I could not help the whimper of fear that came with that thought. “What was that Father?”

“That is not important at the moment.” I turned to look at Lucius confused. ‘Wasn’t the whole reason he called Draco to explain that I was staying in the house from now on?’ 

“What I want to discuss at the moment is why you despise Ms. Potter so much.” He said a stern look on his face.

“If that is all you want to talk about Father then I will talk to when I get back.” 

“If you hang up on me now Draco I will come and get you myself and will ground you from going into town for the rest of the school year!” Lucius said with anger in his voice that I had not heard since I had told him what my uncle had started doing when I was twelve.

“You can’t be serious Father!” I heard the shock in Draco’s voice along with a slight tremble of fear.

“I assure you Draco I am quite serious! Also I think this is a conversation best had without the audience of your friends!” I could tell Lucius was already done with his son’s behavior and would like nothing better than to be given an excuse to punish him if he continued with his current attitude. I heard Draco mumbling as he sent his friends out of the room as well as the opening and shutting of the hotel room door.

“Okay Father they are no longer in the room.” Draco sounded so small and defeated, to be honest it kind of scared me that he could sound like that.

“Good now I was serious I want to know why exactly you act as though you detest Ms. Potter.” Lucius seemed much calmer now that his son seemed to be acting more respectful. I heard Draco give a sigh before he began speaking again.

“It’s not that I detest her. It’s just I wanted to be her friend so badly when we were younger and she just completely snubbed me for the weasel brat. Then any time I tried to approach her over the first few years she was never alone, the weasel brat was always hanging all over her like she was his property and anyone who tried to get close to her could go to hell. It just irritated me, and then when she finally started to have moments when he wasn’t around I was already so mad and Irritated I didn’t know what to do and started to take it out on her. Trust me if I could find a way to explain to her and apologize for everything I would.” He pleaded with his father.

I had been in the process of getting the plate that still had a few sandwiches on it from the table when I was shocked by what I had just heard and froze in place. I felt my knees go weak from all the information before I just collapsed on the floor with a large thump unable to hold myself up any longer from the shocking news.

“What was that Father? Is everything okay?” Draco now had a bit of worry to his tone

“Everything is fine.” He said with a chuckle. “I think Ms. Potter was just surprised to hear such news come from you with such conviction.”

“Wait…s-she’s there? With you? And she just heard every… oh god! Father! You could have warned me!” there was a tone I was unfamiliar with in Draco’s voice that I was curious about. Still not trusting my legs fully I crawled over next to Lucius and used the edge of the table to pull myself up so that I could see Draco’s face. What I saw surprised me even more. He had covered his face with his hands in a manner that I could only assume was to hide the blush on his face. It was actually kind of endearing to see this kind of side of him and it gave me the courage to speak. 

“You…really wanted to be my friend?” I asked my voice coming out more timid than I wanted. 

Draco slowly moved his hands away from his face and gave a squeak when he saw me kneeling next to his father. He slowly nodded his head in answer to my question.

“Then I want a public apology from you in the great hall when everybody is back and a promise that you will never do anything to hurt me again, and will do everything you can to make sure that nobody else will hurt me.” This time more voice was more solid and could even be said to sound stern.

I saw Draco’s face slowly morphed from scared and embarrassed to a bright smile as I gave my conditions.

“Yes Absolutely!” He said nodding his head so fast I was worried he might hurt himself before he suddenly stopped and his face became very concerned. “Why did you not come into town this weekend Potter? And why are you at my Father’s?” He asked the concern growing into worry.

“First of all if we are going to be friends no more of this calling me Potter. I want you to call me Henry like my other friends. Secondly I can answer both of those questions fairly simply. Ron Weasely is a bastard who should burn in hell and I never want to be in the same building let alone the same room as him again if I can help it!” I was trying to explain without having to go into detail but still I felt tears begin to fill my eyes and my body begin to shake before I was being lifted off the ground and placed in Lucius’ lap. He situated me so that my legs were hanging off one side of his lap while my head was in the crook of his neck, and placed my own arms around his neck as I began to let the tears fall. Once I was seated comfortably in Lucius’ lap he wrapped one arm around my waist to soothingly rub my back and placed the other on my head as he stroked my hair.

“Father?” Draco asked worry clear in his voice.

“It’s okay Draco. She will be fine. The headmaster has been informed of what has occurred and has decided that Ms. Potter is no longer to stay in the Gryffindor dorms, and will instead stay here where she will be taken care of. I will explain more once you have returned and Ms. Potter is in better shape. We will both see you once you return, I must tend to Ms. Potter for now goodbye Draco.”

“Goodbye Father.” I heard the distinct sound of the skype call ending before Lucius placed on arm under my knees and the other around my back before getting up from his chair and carrying me up to the room that was now to be mine. He gently set me on the bed before getting a blanket and placing it over me.

“Take a nap Henrietta. You have had a very emotional day and need to rest. Once you are awake then I will make you some more food.” He said as he moved my hair out of my face. I smiled up at as I felt my eyes begin to get heavy. ‘How did I not realize I was so tired?’

“Thank you Lucius this mean a lot to me that you were willing to give me a place where I know I will be safe.” I said before starting to drift off, and before I was fully asleep I felt a light pressure on my forehead and then I was out like a light.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story had small grammatical corrections made to is on 7/4/18


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: I do not own Harry Potter or its characters. Please remember Reviews give me life haha, in all seriousness though please review I do love to get your feedback.  
> TRIGGER WARNING FOR RAPE AND ABUSE! While the abuse is not explicitly described in this chapter, but it is alluded to multiple times. I know it is not clearly stated but Harry and the rest of her friends are 17 so depending on your country this may be considered under aged.

I don’t know how long I was asleep, it couldn’t have been more than the night. When I awoke I heard what sounded like people having a conversation on the landing outside my room. I still felt drained from the activities of the previous day and decided that since I had a bathroom all to myself and didn’t need to worry about anybody coming in that I would take a bath to try to relax some. I slipped out of bed with the blanket that Lucius had placed over me around my shoulders and made my way over to the bathroom. Once there I saw that the bath was already full but that the water had gone cold. I saw that there were temperature controls for the water on the wall by the faucet for the tub. I fiddled with the controls for a while hoping that I had set it correctly and made my way to the toilet area to brush my teeth while waiting for the water to re-warm. 

After I brushed my teeth I went to my closet to grab a towel hoping that by the time I got back the water would be warm enough. I found that not only had Lucius gotten me a blanket last night but that he had also filled one of the shelves in my wardrobe with clean fluffy towels. I grabbed two and made my way back to the bathroom. When I checked the water I found that although it was not as warm as I hoped it was still warm enough that I would not freeze in my attempt to bathe. I quickly stripped and submerged my body in the water.

I sat for a few minutes just relaxing and trying to ensure that I would be ready to face the day. Once I felt mentally prepared for the day I quickly washed my hair and body before I climbed out of the tub. I quickly dried my hair with one of the towels before I wrapped the other towel around my body and made my way back to my closet put my towels in the washer and chose which sweats I would wear for the day. Once happy with the clothes I had chosen, and not really feeling up to eating in the dining hall, I decided to make my way down to the kitchen and see what Lucius had to eat.

When I finally made it to the kitchen I saw that it was actually much later than I had thought, it was closer to 1 o’clock rather than the 9 or 10 that I had assumed I had assumed. I also found that I was not alone in wanting food. I saw Lucius sitting in his robe at the dining table along with another blond.

“Draco? What are you doing back? I thought everybody was supposed to return tonight for dinner like usual. Did something happen?” I asked as I made my way to take a seat at the table next to Lucius who passed me a bowl of what I assumed was tomato soup as he also handed me a plate with a grilled cheese sandwich. I saw Draco give a slight smile.

“To be honest I was worried about you. I know Father said that you would be fine but I wanted to make sure that you knew I was serious about what I had said yesterday. I want to be your friend and I want you to know that I will be there for you if you need me. So I decided to come back early to do just that.” He said sounding very proud, but also quite sincere.

“Thank you Draco. That means a lot to me,” a smirk took over my face as I pointed my spoon at him. “but I still expect the public apology even if it has to wait until tonight.” He gave a slight chuckle at my behavior. The rest of our lunch progressed much the same way. There were some sincere moments as well as several moments of teasing.

“So how are you feeling today Henrietta?” Lucius asked me as he cleared the table.

“I feel much more relaxed and happier than I have almost this entire week.” I said giving him a smile and taking a bite of my soup, which was indeed tomato. “I had the first good night of sleep that I’ve been able to get since….and I was able to relax with a nice bath. Oh and thank you for the towels Lucius it was very nice not to have look very far to find them.” 

“Of course my dear. I am glad to hear that you have had such a wonderful morning so far. Are you feeling well enough that we might go to the nurse’s office so that we might perform a complete physical.” His voice was entirely void of joy as he spoke about doing a physical.

“Why would she need a physical this early in the year Father? Wait does this have to do with the weasel? Also since when do you call each other by your given names?” He asked looking between the two of us. At the mention of Ron, I immediately felt tense as a shudder went through my body. 

“Yes it does. I really would rather not go into more detail than that right now. We agreed that since I would be staying with him we should be on a first name basis at least when we were in private. Lucius is a physical really necessary? Is there any way that I could do it next weekend?” I could feel tears welling up in my eyes. ‘Damn I hate how much I have been crying over this. Why did I ever befriend that bastard?’

“Unfortunately dear I’m afraid that this is necessary, and it would be best if we did it sooner rather than later to ensure that we are able to gather all injuries for when we file the report.”

“W-wait report? Who said anything about a report?” I asked a little worried about what would happen if a report was filed.

“Well I assumed Henrietta that you would want to press charges.” He had a skeptical tone in his voice and concern was clear on his face. All I could do was stare at him in disbelief.

“Father I may not be certain what exactly is being discussed but I can tell that Henry seems very distressed. Perhaps it would be best if we don’t try to push it.”

“Normally I would agree with you Draco, but in this case, because of certain factors I truly do believe that it would be best for Henrietta to report what has happened.” While I appreciated what they were doing I was also starting to get super annoyed.

“Henrietta can also make decisions for herself!” I said as I stood taking my lunch plates into the kitchen after losing my appetite. It is not often that I turn food away when I have the chance to have more than the crumbs I was given at my relatives, but the way this conversation was going I knew that I wasn’t going to be able to stomach another bite. When I turned around after placing my plates in the sink I saw both of them staring at me.

“What? You were both talking as if I was a child who wasn’t present and couldn’t make their own decisions. Which, by the way, I am neither.” I took a deep breath. “And before either of you begin, let me say my peace on this subject. I. DO. NOT. WANT. TO. PRESS. CHARGES. All I want is to put this whole mess behind me. The only way I am going to have a physical done is if you honestly think that I need one for my own health that is it. Not to help with a report but to ensure that I am physically healthy. AM I CLEAR?” By the end of my outburst, I was leaning on the counter panting trying to catch my breath. I heard a chair scrape across the floor, and when I looked up I saw Lucius walking over.

“I am so sorry Henrietta.” He said as he wrapped his arms around my shoulders and pulled me into a hug. “I did not mean to upset you so much. I honestly was only suggesting what I thought was best but if you would rather not than I will drop it but I do want to take you to the office and do a complete physical to make sure that you are okay and that there was no serious damage that was missed. While I can’t say that it will be a pleasant process, I can say that I will do everything I need to in order for you to be comfortable while I perform the physical.” As he spoke he slowly ran one hand over my hair. I realized then that I could get used to this man comforting me. 

“If you are up to it, we can perform the physical in a few hours at the nurse’s office.” Lucius said as he stood. “For now I will get dressed and then I will head to the office to make sure that everything is ready. Why don’t you two spend that time together to try to truly put everything in the past.” He said as he made his way out of the room.

“Are you going to let him perform the physical?” Draco asked me once his father was out of the room. I sighed feeling a sense of defeat envelope me.

“Probably. I mean I understand why he wants me to file a report, but I just can’t. So to make it up to him I will let him perform the physical to give him some sort of sense of peace. So, in that case, what should we do to kill the time?” 

“Hmmm well we could go toss a rugby ball around outside for a bit or we could just sit and chat.” He suggested caution clear in his voice.

“How about we do both? We can toss around a rugby ball for a bit and then just sit and chat for a while.” I said giving him a smile.

“That does sound good. Why don’t I get the rugby ball, and you can put on some shoes?” He asked.

“Sounds like a plan.” I made my way back up to my room and grabbed my sneakers and put them on before going back downstairs to find Draco waiting by the door. 

“So do you want to go to the field to play or would you rather just play right outside?” Draco asked as I approached.

“I know that the rest of the students won’t be back until tonight, but I would still feel better if we just went outside and tossed the ball around for now.” And that is what we did for almost an hour until Lucius finally came out of the house.

“Okay now I expect to see you in the office in no more than 2 hours. Am I understood?”He said his voice stern but a smile was clear on his face.

“Yes sir!” I said as I gave a faux salute getting a chuckle from both Malfoy men.

“I will make sure she is their Father.” Draco said shaking his head at my antics. We quickly said our goodbyes and Lucius gave us a wave before he headed to his office.

“So do you want to go back to tossing the ball around or do you want to finally tell me what happened? If you, one of the strongest people I have met, need a safe place away from someone who was once your friend then I can only assume that something terrible has happened.” Draco said as he turned to me all joking and joy gone from his attitude. I let out a sigh.

“I promise Draco that I will tell you what has happened if for no other reason than I want to make sure you understand what you are signing up for when you agree that you will protect me from ever getting hurt again. I just would prefer if your Father was there when I do so. It’s odd to admit or even think but your father has been a real comfort to me through this ordeal ever since he found out.” 

“I understand. Then let’s toss this ball back and forth a bit longer and then we can make our way over to the office for your physical. Afterward, I expect to get the truth out of you.” He said the smile returning to his face as he spoke. We played around for about another hour before we finally decided we should call it quits and go meet Lucius.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story had small grammatical corrections made to is on 7/4/18


	7. Chapter 7

Once we were done messing around we quickly put the rugby ball away and started over to the nurse’s office to meet with Lucius. Being able to just walk and talk with Draco was so refreshing especially after having to look over my shoulder all the time to feel even slightly safe for what felt like months already. As we made our way to the office I decided it was time that I got to know Draco for who he was and not who I assumed he was.

“So, Draco since we’ve never really talked before I was wondering how do you spend all your summers?” I asked.

“I don’t really do much.” He said looking over at me with a grin. “Besides I’m sure, being the celebrity that you are, that your summers are way more interesting and fun than mine are.” I could tell that he was teasing from the chuckle that he gave afterward, but I was still anxious about him knowing how awful my summers really had been.

“I still want to know.” I smiled at him hoping that I was able to hide my anxiousness. “So, what is it you do? There is no way that it is more boring than what Hermione does.”

“Let me guess she spends it with her nose in her books.” He said while laughing.  
I couldn’t help but join in as I responded. “She hardly even takes the time to talk to me she gets so caught up in it.”

“I will admit that I do more interesting things than that.” He said once we had both been able to calm down out laughter. “I do use part of my summer to do the homework, but the majority of it is spent traveling with my father, or interning with uncle Severus in his lab.” There was a fond smile on his face by the time he was done. “What about you Harriet?” I stumbled when I heard that dreaded question and felt the blood in my veins turn to ice. I still wasn’t comfortable with him knowing the truth but I also didn’t want to start this new friendship with a lie. Even if I was ready to tell him I knew I wouldn’t be telling him where others might overhear. In the end, I decided to tell the truth without any of the awful details.

“My summers were never really all that great I hardly left the house, to be honest.” I hoped that would be enough to have him drop the topic.

“Really you don’t even have one good story from the summers?” He said shock clear in his voice and on his face.

“Nope my summers have been spent mostly doing chores. Although there was one summer when I got to tend to a garden.” I was trying so hard not to think of what would happen inside the house. Thankfully before we could talk about it anymore I heard my name being called. As I turned toward the sound I felt my blood run cold as I saw Hermione run towards us with a giant smile on her face. I could tell the moment she noticed whom I was with. The smile dropped from her face and she stopped dead in her tracks.

“What the HELL are you doing with that snake?” She said as she glared at Draco the clear in her voice and eyes.

“Relax ‘Mione we’re just walking. Draco and I have decided to let the past stay in the past, and try to get to know each other for who we are now so that we might be friends.” I knew my answer would just upset her more, but I really didn’t want to have another secret from her, nor was I ashamed of being friends with Draco.

“Seriously Harriet!?! After everything, he and his goons have done to us? To you?” She said more shocked than angry as she stood there with her mouth hanging open.

“Yes seriously. Like I said we’ve decided to let go of the past.” This wasn’t the first time I had to defend my choice of friends to Hermione. A very similar situation occurred when I decided to befriend Luna Lovegood after my godfather had passed away during our 5th year. In fact, the only person who was ever supportive of that choice, or who has ever tried to be nice to her was Nevil Longbottom. “When are you going to understand, I am my own person? You can’t tell me who I can and can’t be friends with!” for the first time in a long time she was speechless. I took a deep breath and tried to calm down before I spoke again. “I’m sorry for losing my temper ‘Mione. You clearly had something else you wanted to talk about when you called out to me, so what was it?” Asking her this seemed to wake from her shocked stupor and brought a slight smile back to her face.

“Well I’m not sure I forgive you, but I can’t keep this news to myself anymore.” Her smile got bigger as she spoke. “So yesterday while we were out in town Ron asked me if I wanted to go to a café with him. I, of course, said yes.” Her smile was now just as big as it had been when she first approached us. “It was so lovely! It was just the two of us sat in a booth at the back. After we finished our food He reached across the table and took my hand in his and asked me, well just the best question.” I felt the blood in my veins turn to Ice once more only this time Draco must have noticed how worried I was because he put his hands on both my shoulders. It helped to act as an anchor to keep my mind from wondering and remembering a memory that I would much rather forget entirely. “He asked me if I wanted to be his girlfriend!” And just like that, I was standing there staring at one of my best friends as the world around me fell apart. If not for Draco I probably would have collapsed.

“Harriet what’s wrong? You look like you’re going to be sick.” As if on cue I puked. Just the thought of what that monster might do to my friend set me on edge. “Oh my god Harriet!” Hermione took a step back at the sight of my being sick while Draco came and stood next to me.

“And on that note Granger we must be on our way to the nurse’s office now.” Draco took one of my arms and wrapped it around his shoulders while holding me up at the waist as he guided me towards the nurse’s office.

“Of course, I’ll come with you.” Hermione said as she started to follow us.

“That really isn’t necessary Granger I have the situation completely under control and you will only get in the way at the moment, so why don’t you go find your weasel of a boyfriend and bother him instead.” As Draco spoke he took on the cruel cold tone that was all too familiar. It must have worked though because I soon heard Hermione storm off without another word.

“Are you alright Harriet? Do you need to sit down? Do you need to vomit again?” His said as we continued to make our way towards the office, his voice returning to the warm and caring tone that I was quickly becoming familiar with.

“Honestly I think I just need to go see your dad as soon as possible.” I said as my legs started to give out when suddenly I was in Draco’s arms as he carried me and ran as fast as he could. The entire time I couldn’t stop thinking _‘I can’t believe this! What if he does something to her? What if he turns against her? What if he tells her what he did to me?’_ It wasn’t too long before we were in front of the office and Draco was setting me down. Once I was back on my feet he began to knock until the door was opened. A soon as the door opened I practically collapsed while basically sobbing into Lucius’ chest. He quickly wrapped me up in his arms and started to run his hand over my hair. Being in his arms, surrounded by the warmth and smell that was Lucius, really helped to calm m down again.

“What on earth has caused you to become so worked up my dear?” Lucius asked once my sobbing had become just a few tears and sniffles.

“On our way over we ran into Granger.” He seemed to think that was enough of an explanation. I looked up at Lucius and noticed the confused look on his face.

“As we were walking over we ran into Hermione and she shared some news that was upsetting, to say the least.” I took a deep breath to try to calm myself before continuing.

“Apparently, she and r-ro-Ron have started dating.” Immediately I was wrapped up tightly in Lucius’ arms again as my tears fell silently this time. It took a while for my tears to stop and for Lucius to release me from his arms. Lucius sat down in one of the chairs in the room and motioned for me to sit in the other chair.

“Now I do understand that hearing about that boy so unexpectedly would be upsetting, but I also get the feeling that something else is bothering you.” He said, his voice gentler than I had heard it be before. I realized that at some point Draco had left the room without me noticing.

“Where did Draco go?” I asked hoping to put off the talk that I knew Lucius wanted to have if even for only a moment.

“He is just waiting for us outside the room so that we can talk freely.” He said as he sat forward in his chair. “Now Henrietta please tell me what else is bothering you.” He took my hand in both of his. I took a moment to truly make sure I was calm before I began to explain.

“to be honest at first I thought it was just hearing about him, but on the way over here I realized that there was more to it than that. I realized that I’m both worried about Hermione and hurt by her choice.” I wiped away the tears that had started to fall with my free hand. “I’m worried that he is going to do something to her. I mean I never would have thought he could before, but now… I’m just so scared for her and at the same time, I’m just as hurt. I’m hurt that she would even consider dating him after what he did to me, let alone be happy about it. I know she doesn’t have a clue but it still hurts.” At this point, I was staring at the ground with tears flowing freely down my face. Lucius used the tips of his fingers to gently lift my face so that he could look me in the eyes.

“Henrietta, I want you to understand something, what you are feeling is completely valid. You had someone whom you trusted completely not only violate that trust but violate you as well. This is not something that you are going to be able to just put behind you. Now I will do everything in my power that I can to help. For now, let’s focus on making sure that you are physically healthy and then we can work on making sure that you feel safe and are mentally healing as well.” His voice was so soft and gentle as he spoke it was a comforting as a soft blanket. I hardly even noticed when I stopped crying and he wiped the last of my tears away. We both stood from our chairs I climbed onto the exam table as Lucius double check that he had everything.

“Okay now I hate to do this but before we begin I do have to ask you a few questions. First, when was your last period?” he asked his tone takin on a more professional tone.

“I guess it was about a week before I came out here for the school year.” I said. It has always been hard for me to keep track of the dates.

“Okay. Now I’m sorry but I have to ask, do you remember if… that boy, or… your uncle ever used…condoms?” He was clearly trying to be careful with the words he chose to say.

“Well I know that after I had my first period that my uncle did, but I doubt r-Ron even th-thought about it.” I said while trying my hardest not to puke at the thought of what they had done to me but it wasn’t easy.

“Shh you did great my dear, now do you have any questions for me?” There was a slight smile on his face when he asked.

“Just one… why do you have those blood vials when there isn’t a way to check them here?” I asked trying to hide the worry I felt from my voice.

“Because I want to make sure that you are completely healthy, and to do that I need to take some blood, and since there isn’t equipment to analyze it here I am going to take it to an acquaintance who owes me a favor and has access to a lab, for analysis.” He gave me a reassuring smile. “Now it’s going to be a fairly simple checkup. I am going to start by taking your vitals, and then I am going to have you pee in this cup, and then I am going to take some blood. So, are you ready?” His tone was still professional but it was plain as day on his face that there was still trying to put my needs first. Lucius was right, the whole process didn’t even take a whole hour.

“Now how about we get Draco and go have some food? How does that sound Henrietta?” He asked as he helped me off the table.

“I think that sounds really nice.” I said as we walked out of the room to meet with Draco. We didn’t have to go very far though because Draco was waiting for us right outside the office.

“Well Father? Is she okay?” He sounded calm but I could tell from the way that he was shifting back and forth between his feet that he was worried.

“As far as I can tell so far Henrietta is just fine, but I do have a to drop off a few samples off at the lab to have some tests run and those results are going to take a few days at least.” Lucius said surrounding very pleased with my results so far. “For now, though let’s return back to the house and have some lunch.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story had small grammatical corrections made to is on 7/4/18


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: I do not own Harry Potter or its characters. Please remember Reviews give me life haha, in all seriousness though please review I do love to get your feedback. 
> 
> TRIGGER WARNING FOR RAPE AND ABUSE! While the abuse is not explicitly described it is implied. I know it is not clearly stated but Harry and the rest of her friends are 17 so depending on your country this may be considered underaged.

Our walk back to the house was thankfully was uneventful, and very peaceful. We spent most of the walk just chatting and getting to know each other. Lucius asked us what we thought of our classes so far. Draco and I also argued about whose house was going to win the first match of the season. By the time we actually reached the house we were all laughing and I was starving.

“I will go make the three of us some lunch, and while I do that you two can decide how we will spend our afternoon.” Lucius said as we walked into the house. Draco and I each gave a quick nod and made our way to the living room as Lucius continued into the kitchen. I sat down on the couch and pulled my feet up next to me while Draco sat in the armchair next to me.

“So, Harriet what would you like to do?” he asked once we were both comfortable in our seats.

“Hmm well I don’t want to go out somewhere after what happened earlier, so could we do something here like maybe watch something on Netflix?” I asked feeling wiped out from running into Hermione and the crying I had done earlier. Draco looked over at me with a gentle smile on his face.

“Yeah, we can definitely do that. How about something like Bates Motel, or Criminal Minds?” He was clearly excited to watch both the shows that he suggested, so I didn’t want to upset him by saying no.

“Sure, I guess we could watch one of those.” I said failing to keep the apprehension I felt, about watching shows that had to do with people getting hurt, out of my voice.

“…Harriet if you don’t want to then we can watch something else.” Draco said the worry he was feeling clear on his face and in his voice. To be honest he looked like I had just kicked his favorite puppy.

“But you seem about watching one of those shows.” I felt bad about disappointing him, but at the same time, I really didn’t want to deal with anything else that might upset me after having such an emotionally exhausting day.

“Sure, but the wonderful thing about Netflix is that I can watch whatever show whenever I have time. So again, I ask is there something else you would rather watch?” I knew he was trying to be kind, but I could also hear in his voice that he was starting to get annoyed with me.

“I agree and with that same logic, I can always watch something else later. You should choose Draco.” I really wanted to make sure that I was putting forth my best effort to be a good friend especially since I felt like I was losing my two best friends.

“I appreciate the offer Harriet but you are the one who has been through the most today, so you should be the one to pick what it is we watch.” At this point, our arguing had become loud enough that Lucius could hear us from the kitchen.

“What on earth is the reason for all this god-awful noise?” Lucius said as he walked into the room.

“Harriet wants to stay in and watch Netflix, but she won’t tell me what it is she wants to watch.” Draco was very clearly frustrated at this point.

“Because Draco seems really excited to watch his shows and I don’t want to be a wet blanket on his excitement.” I said in a quiet voice that was just barely above a whisper not wanting to upset anyone any further. From the looks on their faces though you would think I had just grown a 2nd head.

“Henrietta come here.” Lucius said as he sat down on the couch with me. I cautiously moved so that I was basically in his lap. He wrapped his arms around me, pulled me close to him, and began to slowly run his hand up and down my back in a somewhat soothing way. “I know that you are trying your best to be a good friend to Draco but that means that you have to let him be a friend to you too. Especially when you have had such a draining day. Now, how about you tell us what it is you want to watch?” The entire time Lucius was speaking he kept rubbing my back, and he made sure that his voice was soft even if his tone made it clear that there was no room to argue. I just sighed and resigned myself to the fact that these two men were not going to let me just melt into the shadows like I was used to doing on my bad days. “Fine, I was hoping that we could watch either Zootopia or Moana.” Lucius smiled softly at me, released me from his arms, and stood up.

“I think those are wonderful options. How about we have some lunch while we decide between the two.” He said while helping me up from the couch.

“That’s a great idea, Father. I feel like I could eat a horse.” Draco said laughing while he stood from his seat as well. I followed both of them into the dining room only to freeze in the doorway. I couldn’t believe my eyes. On the table in front of me was my favorite meal. I don’t know how Lucius knew but I wasn’t going to complain.

I was so speechless that all I could get out was “How?”

Lucius just smiled this huge smile that made him look like the cat that caught the canary. I had never realized before but when he smiles he looks years younger and that made it easy to see just how handsome he truly is.

“How did I know this was your favorite?” He said while chuckling, which broke my train of thought. “It was quite easy, to be honest. All I had to do was ask the chef if there were any meals that you had asked for multiple servings of in the past, and if so which one you asked for the most often.” Lucius looked to be very pleased with himself. I could only assume that this was not only because he was able to find out which dish was my favorite, but also because he had been able to surprise me with it.

“I didn’t think anybody noticed.” I said as I felt tears begin to form in my eyes both from how happy I was to have someone care this much and from how embarrassed I was that my love for mac and cheese with hotdogs was no longer a secret.

I quickly wrapped Lucius in a hug. “Thank you. You don’t know how much this means to me.” As I pulled away I quickly wiped away any tears that may have fallen.

“So why is this your favorite meal, Harriet?” Draco asked as we all took our seats at the table.

“Well, …it’s because…this is what I would make for myself when the Dursley’s would go out of town…so to me this dish…well it means I’m safe and I’m not going to be hurt by anyone…and I know that’s silly but it’s why this is my favorite.” Lucius looked at me in a way that I almost mistook for pity, until he took my hand in his and I realized it wasn't pity on his face, but sympathy.

“Then I say we make this a weekly meal at least.” Draco said caring clear in his voice. The confusion must have been clear on my face because Draco quickly explained. “that way at least once a week you can have a physical reminder that you are safe here with us.” I got up from my seat and walked around the table and gave Draco a hug.

“Thank you.” I said before letting go and going back to my seat. The rest of lunch passed with us joking and deciding between movies. By the time we had finished lunch, we decided that we would watch Moana. I began to clean up the meal only to have Lucius stop me.

“Leave it for now. I will ask some of the school staff to come to clean it later.” Lucius said as he took the dishes from my hands, put them back on the table, and began to gently steer me back to the living room. Once we reached the couch he sat down and pulled me gently down with him. Draco followed us out of the dining room and proceeded to sit on the floor in front of us. Once we had all gotten comfortable Lucius pulled Netflix up on the TV and started the movie.

 I was able to enjoy the movie for the most part; at least until we got to the fight at the end of the movie. Watching the way that Teka went after Moana and Maui brought back flashes of Uncle Vernon coming at me with his fists, and of Ron pinning me to the wall. I hadn’t even realized that I had begun to hyperventilate and shake, or that I had moved closer to Lucius at least no until he paused the movie and wrapped his arms around me.

“Henrietta…”  he said trying to keep his voice soothing. “…I need you to match your breaths with mine.” He started to take slow deep breaths and I tried my best to match my breathing to his. While I was trying to focus on my breathing I notice Draco leave the room.  If I hadn’t been focusing so much on trying to calm down I might have thought that he was overwhelmed with how many panic attacks I had today. For the next several minutes I tried to keep all of my focus on my breathing, afterward, I finally started to feel better when I noticed Draco come back into the room with a tray of tea.

He set the tray on the coffee table in front of the couch as he said “I hope you aren’t allergic to chamomile tea. I thought it might help you relax after you had your breathing under control again.” After setting the tray down he handed me a cup of warm tea. I couldn’t help it I just stared at him with the shock and gratitude I felt plain as day on my face.

Lucius gave Draco a small smile before saying “That was very thoughtful of you Draco. Now Henrietta when you feel like you can manage I want you to take sips of the tea in between your breathing.” I nodded so that he knew I understood while I continued to focus on my breathing. It took a few more minutes of breathing before I felt up to drinking the tea, and by then it was almost cold. I drank about two cups of tea before I felt like I wasn’t even on the tail end of a panic attack. After the last of the panic attack had passed I started to feel like I was just a burden to these two, who had just stopped what they were doing to take care of me.

“I’m…” Before I could get any more out Lucius placed his hands on my shoulders and looked me in the eye.

“Don’t even think about apologizing, also don’t try to deny it. The guilt that you feel is clear on your face.” Lucius took the cup from my hands and placed it back on the tray before he pulled me into a hug. “You have nothing to feel guilty about my dear.” He said as he ran a hand through my hair. It had been a long time since I had felt so safe and cared for, and I even felt like maybe I was loved.

I felt tears form in my eyes, from all the emotions I was feeling and begin to spill over as I cried my thanks, and as I apologized for having ruined the movie.

No one spoke again until my tears stopped. When they did finally stop it was Draco who spoke first. “Harriet you didn’t ruin the movie.” He said as he sat down next to Lucius and me and looked at me so seriously.

“Draco is right, you did not ruin the movie. We are just worried about you and what triggered this panic attack. If you feel up to telling us we would love to know so that we can try to avoid this happening again.” Lucius said as he ran his hands up and down my arms.

I gave a small nod as I took a deep breath trying to prepare myself to talk about what had just happened. “It was the fight with Te Kā. It made me have flashbacks to what Uncle Vernon did, and what Ron did.”

Draco began to get up to leave…I could only assume he wanted to give me some privacy, but honestly, his presence was almost as soothing as Lucius’. “Draco wait…please stay? I know we just started this friendship but I would feel better if you knew what happened so that I can come to you when your dad is busy, or if he isn’t around.” I knew this was asking a lot of Draco but I also knew that aside from Lucius he was the only one that I could trust with this at the moment.

“If you’re sure you want me to know then I will stay.” After I nodded my certainty he sat back down. I explained that the fight made me remember the beatings I had gotten from my uncle, which made me remember what Ron had done. By the time I was done I had tears in my eyes again, and Lucius was just nodding in understanding. When I looked at Draco I saw his worry mixed with curiosity, and I could tell that he had questions that he wanted to ask, but that he wouldn’t because he didn’t want to cause another panic attack.

“I know you have questions Draco...” I gave him what I hoped was a reassuring smile. “…So, I will make you a deal. You get me some more tea and make your public apology tomorrow because I want to be there when you do and I don’t think I’m up for going to the Dining Hall tonight, and I will try to answer your questions.” Draco gave a small chuckle before also nodding his agreement. It took Draco a few moments to make some more tea but once I had taken a sip of the fresh tea the questions began.

“What did that Bastard do to you? I mean seriously its almost like no matter what happens it causes a panic attack. If it was something so horrible why is he still here?” I felt Lucius tighten his hold on me as I took a deep breath.

“He rapped me the first morning we were back.” I knew that if I said more I might break down again, so I just let what I had said hang in the air. I noticed Draco’s posture go slack almost as if he had no bones, and from the look on his face, I could tell that he was having trouble processing what I had just said.

“How is that even possible? I mean I knew the weasel was a bastard but how did he get away with it? How can anyone even still think he might be a decent person?” At Draco’s questions, I released a breath that I didn't even know I was holding.

‘He believes me…thank god he believes me!’ Knowing that he believed me was enough to give me the courage I needed to explain, at least a little bit more, what had happened. “I had gone to take a shower in the morning after I had woken up thinking that I would be able to have it to myself for a while before the other girls woke up and started to get ready for the day. It was one of the few times that I was able to be alone and just unwind without having to worry about who saw me. He must have followed me in.” I felt a tear roll down my cheek. “I was so caught up in my thoughts that I didn’t even hear him come in. One moment I was enjoying a nice relaxing shower and then the next thing I knew he was holding me down, and I was being told that I belonged to him and that I had asked for it.” I felt a sob start to form in my chest as memories started to come back to the forefront of my mind.

Lucius started to rub up and down my arms when he felt me stiffen to keep the sob at bay. “Shh, it is okay Henrietta you are safe. He can’t get to you here and you do not have to face this alone.” He whispered as he held me close. Knowing that Lucius would do everything in his power to keep me safe helped me to calm down and come back to my surroundings. When I looked at Draco I could practically see the anger coming off of him in waves as he stood with his hands in fists at his sides.

“Draco are you okay?” I asked, worried he might do something he would regret, as I stood from Lucius’ lap to try and block Draco’s path. Draco seemed to go from anger to shock as soon as he processed my question. He stood there for a moment before a laugh broke free.

“After what you went through you’re asking if I’m okay?” He ran a hand through his hair and pulled me into a hug with his other. I quickly wrapped my arms around him and I tried to comfort him to the best of my ability, as I tried to prepare myself to tell Draco my next secret. I slowly pulled back from our hug and forced myself to look Draco in the eyes.

“It’s not the first time I’ve been in that type of situation…I just hope it was the last.” What happened next happened so fast that I had trouble processing what truly happened. One second I’m standing with Draco, who was clearly calm and worried about me, and the next I’d been pulled into Lucius lap, again, with Draco looking as though he was ready to kill someone as he stood there glaring at me.

“What do you mean it wasn’t the first time?” Draco said through clenched teeth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy 4th of Jully all! I'm sorry it has taken so long to update this story. I have had a lot going on this year but most of that has calmed down at this point. I can say that I have the rough drafts for the next 4 chapters done and I just need to polish them up before I'm comfortable posting them. I'm not sure how long this will take but I will try to make sure that it doesn't take another year.


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